


Drabble request #1

by Crowned_Ladybug



Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Brothers, Gen, Late Night Conversations, Platonic Relationships, Tumblr Prompt, i love writing these two, showing a little more of my anti's character once again
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-06
Updated: 2017-10-06
Packaged: 2019-01-09 20:40:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12284022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crowned_Ladybug/pseuds/Crowned_Ladybug
Summary: "Nothing is going to happen to you."Requested by anonymous on Tumblr.





	Drabble request #1

It’s late, and they both know they should probably be sleeping, but being adults means no one is going to tell you off for being irresponsible. And so they are free to stay up, Chase and Anti, two brothers sprawled on the couch and talking away into the night. The world at 2am is quiet, almost as if it was only theirs, and the walls that hear their words don’t judge.

“You know what I’m scared of?” Anti breathes, staring at the ceiling. His chest feels heavy. “The future.”

“Yeah, I...I can respect that,” Chase nods slowly. “I do think the future is going to be good to us, but...I get it that you’re scared.”

“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he tangles his fingers into his hair, presses the pad of his palm against his forehead tiredly. “Anything could happen. I could just wake up tomorrow with everything _gone_.”

Chase doesn’t know what to say. He lets Anti talk and hopes he can find some way to comfort him if it gets too bad.

“You could all just be up and gone any day...you and Seán and Signe and Dark and everyone else...all gone...and I would be here alone,” he lets his head fall back against the couch, arm laying across his stomach. His breaths come short and shaky, but he can’t fight them. “I could just die, I could fade.”

_Fade_. Fade from existence, utterly and irrevocably. Gone from the world the moment no one remembers him anymore. It’s a terrifying existence every moment Anti lets it catch up to him, knowing just how frail he is in a sense, so entirely dependent on others. He lives knowing that one day everyone could just turn their backs, leave him behind, and he wouldn’t even live to feel the heartbreak.

“I’m going to fade, aren’t I, Chase?” his voice is small. He turns his head to look at his brother, lower lip trembling. “I’m going to fade.”

Chase takes a breath, braces himself. He hates seeing Anti so hurt. “No,” he stares right into Anti’s eyes, trying to sound as reassuring and certain as possible. “Nothing is going to happen to you. You’re not going to fade.”

Anti wants to say otherwise, he wants to cry that he’s going to be gone and he’s scared, he doesn’t want to be gone. There’s so much more he wants to do still, but tonight it feels like his end could come any moment, it could come tomorrow, or the next week, or just a bit before Christmas. The reality of it scares him.

But he can’t say anything, not when the next second Chase is right there, gathering him up into his arms and squeezing him to his chest. “I’m not going to let you fade.”

Chase knows it’s a stupid promise to make, because ultimately he can’t know if he will keep it, but for now he does his best. His kids are growing up with Uncle Anti visiting every other day or so, there’s pictures on the wall that include Anti like good family photos should, there’s a jacket he really loves upstairs in his wardrobe he got from him, and there’s all those memories he cherishes. He won’t just forget his brother. He can’t.

He waits until the tension leaves Anti’s shoulders to pull away. He rubs his upper arm and offers him a small smile – and slowly, shakily Anti returns it.

“Maybe we should go to sleep now,” Chase offers gently. “I think we both need some rest.”


End file.
